Roughly, twenty minutes later Nate walked into the main ballroom just before the Opening Ceremonies was due to begin. He took a seat towards the back and waited for the show to begin. He eyed over the crowd of roughly 100 or so people. Not bad for a convention like this. The lights dimmed and the music started, slightly ominous with the sounds of howls in the background. Ben, a twentysomething man of medium build and ginger hair took to the podium.
Just as he was about to speak, the doors at the back of the ballroom flew open with a loud racket. A moment later, in walked Zemelda Horrace decked out in tight, black leather pants and a bright red blouse. Her curly, brown hair bounced freely as she walked into the ballroom. Everyone in the room stared at her aghast. He had a devious grin on her face as she looked over the room as she walked down the center aisle, everyone’s eyes on her. She walked up the steps at the front of the stage and looked over the audience. Ben looked just and surprised and confused as everyone else as she turned and looked over the audience in the room.
“So, this is what an entire room of werewolf fans looks like? My such fine...specimens.” she purred.
Nate stood up and shouted, “All right, that’s enough. It’s bad enough that you break into my apartment but now you have to come down here and troll my favorite con too?”
“Troll? My dear boy I come offering gifts for the audience and you call me a troll? Come to me my boy,” she responded, gesturing Nate forward. To his surprise, almost as if he couldn’t control himself, he began walking forward towards the stage. He walked up the steps and onto the stage. He stood next to Zemelda and turned to face the audience. She circled Nate as she addressed him.
“My dear boy, you have no idea the power I wield. With a flick of my wrist, I can transform you from man to beast.” She stared into his eyes as she ran her finger down her chest. “Yes, that’s it. Right here, right now you will transform into a werewolf in front of all these people. It will be a long, agonizing transformation, just because you gave me lip boy.”
Nate couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Wha...what?”
“Look at them Nate.” Zemelda gestured to the audience. “Look at them salivate. They want to see it happen.”
Nate felt a sharp pain radiate through his body and he cried out as he dropped to his knees. The pain ended in his fingertips, which he held up, letting out a soft moan of agony as thick, sharp claws started to grow out from his fingertips. He looked in shock as each fingertip was soon tipped with a sharp, inch long claw. He saw long strands of dark hair growing in on his forearms. His breathing had increased intensely. He looked up at Zemelda pleading for her to make it stop.
“How do you think they did that? The effects are incredible,” whispered an audience member in the front row. He was a young man, no older than sixteen, talking to a friend roughly the same age. Zemelda’s attention turned to the young man and smiled.
“Why, my dear boy, I am so glad you approve. I did it like...THIS!” she exclaimed, casting the same spell on him as well.
The young boy cried out as the same changes began to happen to him as his fingernails slowly grew out into large, thick claws and light colored hairs grew in on his forearms. He looked at the changes in both shock and excitement. He looked up at Zemelda, smiling, revealing his teeth beginning to become fangs. His young friend looked to Zemelda expectantly, smiling ear to ear.
“You want what they have?” she asked to the boy. He nodded enthusiastically. “Then you shall have it!”
The boy watched as he too began to grow claws and fur, grinning from ear to ear. Zemelda looked over the crowd, smiling. She saw their incredulous faces as they looked on. She waved her hands outward.
“You’re all werewolves! Transform! Let out your beasts!” she called out.
The audience members cried out as the changes began to overtake all of them, watching as they too began to grow fur, claws and fangs. Some were ecstatic and some were terrified as the changes overtook them.
The sound of tearing fabric turned her attention back to her first victim, Nate. She knealt down next to him.
“Please...stop this...it hurts…” he struggled to get the words out with the large fangs in his mouth.
“Hush…” she said soothingly, rubbing the side of his now furry face. “You wanted this...deep down you did. But if you were nicer, I wouldn’t have made the transformation so excruciating.”
Nate cried out as his sneakers tore apart as his feet grew and reformed into massive digitigrade paws. His face then slowly began to push out into a lupine snout as his ears grew to points.
Two howls rang out as the two teenagers continued their transformation, their clothes tearing as their bodies grew and reformed. They pulled off their sneakers and watched as their feet likewise transformed into paws as well. Nate and Zemelda looked from them over the rest of the ballroom as the over 100 attendees were in various stages of transformation from man to beast.
Nate slowly stood up and looked over the hall full of people transforming werewolves, feeling both exhilarated and more that a little scared. He had no idea what was going to happen now.